It’s That Time Again

With the upcoming Winter Olympics, the old argument about whether or not figure skating is a sport arises again.

It’s not. A sport shouldn’t be so subject to subjective opinions (and no, an umpire in baseball or football referrees are a different thing). And apparently, in trying to solve that problem, they’ve taken away the artistry, when in reality, artistry is what it’s about. I seen no significant difference between figure skating and ballet, or at least interpretive dance. They don’t even have to carve figures any more, so it should really just be renamed ice dancing.

17 thoughts on “It’s That Time Again”

  1. I dislike judged sports while often admiring the athletes. For example, gymnastics takes tremenous strength, skill, and not a little courage. I respect gymnists but hate the judging aspects of the competition. However, I honestly don’t know of any other way to do it.

    I love “pure” sports like track & field events, swimming, or, in the case of the Winter Olympics, downhill skiing. You’re either faster or you’re not. There is none of that biased crap from international judges between the athletes and the finish line.

  2. Sounds like an objectivist critique of the Olympics. In which case real sport is skiing around the countryside and shooting things on a time limit.

  3. Sport: “an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature.”

    Sounds like a sport to me. You can argue all day whether or not it is an “enjoyable” sport to watch based on the nature of the judging, but sport it most certainly is. Using your definition of “a sport shouldn’t be so subject to subjective opinions” would also eliminate the classic Olympic sports of gymnastics and, to a degree, fencing.

  4. I like George Carlin’s definition. For it to be a sport, someone has to play defense. Otherwise, it’s an activity.

    If bowling had goalies, that would be a heck of a sport. But as it is, it’s an activity where you knock down pins with a heavy ball. Well, who’s stopping you?

    Tonya Harding tried to make figure skating a sport, but it didn’t catch on.

  5. Tonya Harding tried to make figure skating a sport, but it didn’t catch on.
    She was playing hockey, she just had the nomenclature wrong.

  6. I do enjoy watching the good ones. And at the olympic level the also-rans would still be good ones. Don’t much care who wins.

  7. My criterion has always been that if the activity requires you to wear makeup and smile while performing, it’s not a sport. Figure skating and gymnastics are amazing acts of athletic skill but they are more akin to ballet than, say, skiing.

  8. I’ve been saying exactly this since 1972 Munich massacre. Ice dancing and pairs-skating have their place and deserve a large venue, but the Olympics isn’t it. Any “sport” that relies on a panel of judges holding up numbered cards is suspect.

    Sadly, it’s not unimportant. That’s when smiles and make-up factor into the decision. And that’s precisely when human foibles take over.

  9. “Ice dancing and pairs-skating have their place and deserve a large venue, but the Olympics isn’t it. ”

    In the Cold War, the Russians completely dominated ice dance and pairs figure skating. Remember Torvill and Dean? They were the exception that proved the rule, doing their part for Queen and Country to stand tall before Russia. Remember Tai and Randy? The Big Showdown with Rodnina and Zaitsev never happened because Randy Gardner injured himself in practice and couldn’t do the lifts.

    Now that the Cold War is over, the Russians still dominate ice skating. And take Johnny Weir . . . please! An American Dude, he looks like an ethnic Great Russian, and doesn’t he have a Russian coach or some such thing?

  10. Titus,
    there ISN’T Olympic cheerleading NOW, but they’ve been pushing for it for years.

    If other countries have American style cheerleading, I’ve not seen it. They do have it in Canada, but is that still a real country? Or are they just socialist Minnesotans, Montanans and Dakotans who like it REALLY cold? And I’m not even sure the North Koreans have cheerleaders at all. ALL NK’s cheer [at gunpoint] but there’s only one leader allowed. Or how about China, or Cuba, same deal, lots of cheering, one leader.

    And certainly Iran and Saudi or similar Muslim influenced places won’t have American style cheerleading. You just can’t do a good split or somersault in a burkha.

    Given that, how can cheerleading ever be an Olympic “sport”?

  11. I agree with Rand for the most part. About the only time I’ve seen skating judged objectively was in 2002, when the emotional favorite for the gold in the womens singles was Michelle Kwan. Michelle did poorly, and her rival, Irina Slutsky, turned in a much better performance. But then little Sarah Hughes skated the most breathtakingly beautiful performance I’ve ever seen. My wife and I were prepared for another travesty, but the judges surprised everyone (including NBC), and ranked the people properly. It was the best moment in any Olympics in my memory…

    And, yes, I know it isn’t “Slutsky.”

  12. Well, they do say that boxing is a ballet of sorts. Although in ice skating I’d wager you’d see more hair pulling and scratching than actual punching — even on on the woman’s side.

  13. Rand: According to the stated criteria against which they’re supposed to judge — technical merit on specific required moves, and “artistry.” Michelle Kwan blew her technical moves, and Irina Slutskaya, while technically mostly good (save for a less-than-perfect landing), gave a wooden performance.

    Sarah Hughes executed every move flawlessly, and her performance was so full of grace that the entire audience was — unexpectedly — moved to a standing ovation.

    The NBC commentators were almost speechless. Their subsequent commentary was about how the judges were going to have a difficult time awarding Kwan the gold she “deserved.” She “deserved” it by virtue of it being her last chance to get one. And Sarah couldn’t get a gold, because she had plenty of skating years ahead of her.

    Well, the judges stunned everyone by awarding Hughes the gold. I know that the criteria are somewhat arbitrary, but I don’t know of anyone who didn’t think Hughes’ outperformed everyone else.

    Still, it is subjective, and that doesn’t belong in “sports.” I agree with you there.

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